Method for leg and cardiovascular exercise

ABSTRACT

A back slide exercise device for mounting to a vertical surface such as a wall for performing squatting exercises. The back slide exercise device has a slide portion with a smooth surface for slidingly supporting the back of a user performing squat-type exercises. Upper and lower edges of the slide surface are secured to the vertical surface. A user performs squat exercises by leaning against the smooth outer surface of the slide portion with their back and extending their legs to move from a squat position to an upright position and then flexing their legs to move back to a squat position, and repeating this exercise as desired.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The invention relates to the field of exercising equipment and inparticular to those types of devices that provide resistance to the userand allows him to work against the weight of his own body or someportion of the weight of his own body.

[0002] In the invention described herein, a slick flat surface isprovided and rests between the user's back and a vertical surface, suchas a wall, wherein the surface allows for sliding movements, up and downagainst the wall and so allows the user to work his/her leg musclesincluding the quadriceps, hamstrings, gluteus muscles as well as othermuscle groups associated with the squat type of leg exercises. Theinvention allows the user to perform the squat type of leg exercisewithout using heavy weights and also provides a very effectivecardiovascular workout.

[0003] The invention thus provides a portable unit that can be quicklyset up anywhere, against a wall in the home or office or other placewhere the user wants to exercise. After attaching the device to thewall, the user simply leans back against the flat slick surface andbends his knees slowly in a squatting motion. The only other piece ofequipment required by the user is a shirt or jacket made of cotton ornylon or any material which is slippery against the flat surface of thisdevise which will permit him to easily slide up and down while leaningback against the Back Slide device. It is believed that these advantagesas well as others will accrue to the user's benefit and will encouragehim to use the device to perform a healthy exercise.

PRIOR ART

[0004] There are no known devices that are similar in construction andallow the user to perform the squatting type of exercise in the mannerdescribed herein. In addition, there are no known exercise methods thatallow the user to perform the leg exercise described herein with amodicum of equipment.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0005] It is believed that such a device as described herein will findits greatest use for those who do not have a lot of space or money forlarge heavy expensive exercise equipment. This devise will also be verybeneficial for those people on the go since the device can be quicklyset up against any wall at home or away from home. The capability ofusing a simple device that is not subject to failures of variouscomponents, and one that can be set up in a small amount of wall spaceand without having to go through a series of time consuming steps inorder to make it operable is likely to find wide appeal to manypotential customers.

[0006] In addition, the device will not put undue strain on the legs orback or require the user to perform difficult movements that couldincrease the chance of injury. Such safety factors are paramount to thisinvention and are believed to be another advantage of the invention.Unlike typical squat devices, this devise does not create a situationwhere there is weight above the user and upon his back. Also, the devicedoes not create a heavy load on the floor structure which can be a majorconcern in apartments or any multi-story building.

[0007] There are, no doubt, many possible users of the invention whowould like an inexpensive, easy to use device that can provide aneffective workout for the legs and associated muscles as well as providea good cardiovascular workout. The flat surface of the device would alsoprovide an ideal medium for sporting goods companies to place their logoor their custom graphics.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] An exercise device and method of performing exercise using thedevice is shown and described herein. The device comprises a slidingsurface or back plate having a smooth finish at least on one side andbeing of a rectangular shape. The device should be of a material thatcan support the force created by the friction of the user as he slidesagainst the flat surface of the device. The flat sliding surface portionof the device should be of a flexible nature so as to allow the deviceto be rolled up for transport and/or for retail shipping and sales. [Thetop and bottom mounting support members of the device allow it to beattached into wall studs normally found in homes and offices. Thesemounting support members are made of a rigid material such as plasticand run parallel to the edges of the sliding surface. Wall anchors orscrews may be used to secure the mounting support members to a wall suchthat the sliding surface is flat against the wall.] Upper and loweredges of the slide surface are secured to the vertical wall surface.

[0009] Other advantages of the invention will be known to those skilledin the art once the invention is shown and described.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0010]FIG. 1 front view;

[0011]FIG. 2 side view;

[0012]FIG. 3 apparatus in use;

[0013] [FIG. 4 enlarged side view showing mounting screw;]

[0014] [FIG. 5 another side view;]

[0015] [FIG. 6 another front view.]

REFERENCE NUMERALS IN DRAWINGS

[0016]2 flat sliding surface

[0017]4 wall

[0018]6 floor

[0019]8 wall fasteners

[0020]10 user

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0021] The [invention] Back Slide comprises a flat sliding surface 2that [has at least two mounting support members (6 and 8) for mountingthe flat surface] is attached to the wall 4 with fasteners at the topand bottom 8. The sliding surface should have a smooth finish whichallows the user 10 to slide up or down in relation to the floor 6 andalong the mounted flat sliding surface. The surface material should beable to be rolled up for transport.

[0022] The exact dimensions of the Back Slide invention can vary throughtrial and error associated with further refinement of the invention. Anoptimum dimension appears to be a width of approximately 24″ and aheight of approximately 72″. It is important that the Back Slide belarge enough to cover the area of the wall ([10 in] FIG. 3) that isassociated with the user [12] 10 and where he will be leaning against[without hitting the upper and lower mounting support members]. Thesurface is thus higher than it is wide and hence the upper and loweredge of the device would be along the short sides of the rectangularsurface.

[0023] The material that comprises the Back Slide should be chosen sothat it can be easily rolled up for ease of transport and so that it canbe packaged in this way for retail display and/or sales. It is thoughtthat the preferred material for construction of the Back Slide would besome type of flexible plastic. The flat sliding surface of the devicewill be attached to the [upper and lower mounting support members of thedevice] wall as shown on the attached drawings. [The upper and lowermounting support members can be connected to the sliding surface bymeans of a permanent adhesive or fused to the flat sliding surface in atwo step process; or the mounting support members can be made integralto the flat sliding surface in a one step process.]

[0024] It is believed that the sliding surface portion of the devicewhen manufactured, is likely to be about {fraction (1/32)}″ to ⅛″ inthickness. [The wall mounting support portion of the device may besimply two rigid pieces of plastic or other similar material and runningalong the top edge and along the bottom edge of the sliding surfaceportion. The upper and lower wall mounting support members of the deviceare likely to be about 1 inch in height and about ¼ inch in thickness asshown on the attached drawing.] See FIG. [4] 2 for side view [withmounting anchor or screw] and mounting locations.

[0025] [There should be at least two pre-formed or pre-drilled apertures8 in the mounting support members to allow for placement of screws orsheet rock anchors or similar mechanisms through the holes and into wallstuds to thereby support the device. Thus, it is preferred that theholes in the upper and lower mounting support members be spaced apartabout 16″ so as to allow for typical spacing between wall studs. Andthus allow the screws or anchors to be used to attach the flat slidingsurface to two wall studs.]

[0026] Installing the device would entail attaching the [support membersto the studs in the walls by the anchors already mentioned] device to avertical wall at the top and bottom with pressure sensitive adhesive orscrews-and-washers. A hook-and-loop material can also be used in placeof the pressure sensitive adhesive for a portable application. The longsides of the rectangular device would then be in the verticalorientation in relationship to the user and the shorter upper and loweredges would be seen as top and bottom edges of the device. When inplace, the bottom edge should be about 6″ above the level of the floor.

[0027] After the device has been installed, the user is ready to use itin his regular exercise routine. It is suggested that when the user isready to use the invention, he should wear a cotton or nylon shirt orclothing of similar texture that will allow the user to slide up anddown across the Back Slide surface.

[0028] The user can spread his feet and legs apart to a distance thatappears reasonable, typically shoulder width. It is thought that theuser's heels should be anywhere from 6″ to 30″ away from the wall. Asthe heels get closer to the wall the exercise will be easier. Thedistance between the heels and the wall and the amount of spread betweenthe feet will determine how much each muscle group is exercised. As theuser leans back against the flat sliding surface of the Back Slide andraises and lowers his body, the amount of knee bend and the speed atwhich the user performs this exercise will also determine how much eachmuscle group is exercised as well as how much cardiovascular exercise isexperienced. The specific level of knee bend, the specific placement ofthe feet, and specific speed of the exercise will be determined by eachindividual's level of fitness. Users should exercise caution and getmedical recommendations about what levels of exercise are proper for theinvention.

7. A method of performing leg and cardiovascular exercise comprising thesteps of: (a) providing a back slide exercise device comprising a slidemade of a substantially rectangular piece of flexible material having asubstantially smooth outer surface; (b) securing the upper and lowerends of the slide to a vertical surface with fasteners to present thesmooth outer surface of the slide as a substantially vertical, planarsurface; (c) positioning the back of a user against the smooth outersurface of the back slide exercise device by leaning backwards againstthe back slide device; (d) the user extending their legs to raise theirbody in a standing motion while having their back slidingly supported bythe smooth outer surface of the back slide device; (e) the user flexingtheir legs to lower their body in squatting motion while having theirback slidingly supported by the smooth outer surface of the back slidedevice; and (f) repeating the exercise as desired.
 8. The method ofperforming leg and cardiovascular exercise of claim 7, wherein step (a)further comprises unrolling the back slide exercise device from a coiledconfiguration.
 9. The method of performing leg and cardiovascularexercise of claim 7, wherein the user is wearing upper body clothingmade of material having low friction with respect to the smooth outersurface of the slide portion so that the clothing material worn by theuser slides relative to the smooth outer surface of the slide portionduring the exercise without significant resistance.
 10. The method ofperforming leg and cardiovascular exercise of claim 9, wherein theclothing is made of cotton or nylon material.
 11. The method ofperforming leg and cardiovascular exercise of claim 7, wherein step (b)further includes positioning the lower edge of the slide at a locationon the vertical surface about 6 inches above the floor surface uponwhich the user is supported.
 12. The method of performing leg andcardiovascular exercise of claim 7, wherein step of securing the upperand lower ends of the slide to the vertical surface with fastenerscomprises securing the back slide to wall studs.
 13. The method ofperforming leg and cardiovascular exercise of claim 7, wherein step (c)further includes placement of the heels of the user between 6 inches and30 inches away from the vertical surface.